Forget rehab, Mark Sanchez requires shoulder surgery

Sep. 12, 2013
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New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez looks on before an NFL football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2013, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun) / Bill Kostroun AP

by Kristian Dyer, Special for USA TODAY Sports

by Kristian Dyer, Special for USA TODAY Sports

New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez "will require shoulder surgery," and is likely headed for injured reserve, so his stormy career with the team is all but over, a person with knowledge of his condition told USA TODAY Sports.

The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the Jets have not announced the extent of Sanchez's injury. The Jets would not comment Thursday on the diagnosis or the course of treatment.

Sanchez injured his shoulder in a preseason game against the New York Giants and sought a second opinion. He was examined Wednesday by Dr. James Andrews, and the surgeon diagnosed the tear and told the quarterback that he had two options -- surgery or rehab.

But Andrews told Sanchez that surgery was the best option, the person said.

Sanchez insisted Thursday that he has chosen treatment for his throwing shoulder, but the person said it's just a matter of time before the surgery is performed.

A second person with knowledge of the situation, who also requested anonymity because the team hasn't addressed the diagnosis, told USA TODAY Sports that Sanchez will continue to rehab his shoulder and no decision has been made about surgery yet, and that surgery is not imminent.

Last week, as Sanchez and the Jets scrambled to get a definitive diagnosis, Sanchez told people around him that he was worried the Jets wanted to place him on IR and "be done with him."

The Jets are allowed to designate one player to return from injured reserve after Week 8, but it's unlikely that would be Sanchez. The team has handed the starting job to rookie Geno Smith, while stockpiling quarterbacks Matt Simms and Brady Quinn.

As Sanchez's career with the Jets is ending, another is just beginning. After helping the Jets pull off an improbable comeback in Week 1 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Smith will make the second start of his career Thursday night, when the Jets face the New England Patriots in Foxborough, Mass.

Sanchez appeared for the start of practice Tuesday, throwing only with his left arm. Those could be his last tosses for the Jets with either hand.

When asked last week about possibly putting Sanchez on IR, coach Rex Ryan said the team was not contemplating that at the time, "but absolutely things can change."

General manager John Idzik, in his most recent comments on Sanchez on Sept. 4, said: "No, we're not looking at that. We're looking at Mark continuing to rehab. We said it's day-to-day. It's very unpredictable sometimes. Mark knows his body better than anybody else. He's working very hard and so hopefully we'll get him back here soon."

Sanchez's diagnosis was first reported by ESPN, which also said surgery was "likely," but Sanchez quickly responded by saying, "If I needed surgery right now, I never would have left Andrews' office. I would've stayed and got the surgery."

The stumbling block to discarding Sanchez has been his salary. He counts $12.9 million against the 2013 salary cap, and if he is released, he also would count $4.8 million against the cap in 2014.

Before his injury, the Jets might have been able to trade Sanchez, but they likely would have had to absorb most of his contract to make him marketable. The shoulder injury takes that possibility -- which was remote to start -- off the table.